► The current project consists of three interconnected components. First, it aims to establish an epistemological framework for selecting alternative theories in the cognitive archaeology domain.…
(more)

▼ The current project consists of three interconnected components. First, it aims to establish an epistemological framework for selecting alternative theories in the cognitive archaeology domain. Second, it purposes to eliminate the conditions of necessity that are considered to connect the production and use of early body ornaments to abstract shared concepts and theory of mind. Third, it aims to argue that material engagement with non-symbolic material scaffolds is necessary to the emergence of symbolism and meta-representational abilities. A combination of notions from radical embodied cognitive science and situated concepts it is used to support this eliminativist attempt. Overall, this analysis aims to advance some doubts on the idea that the presence of early body ornaments in the archaeological record of Middle Palaeolithic populations constrains the existence of mental capabilities that are considered as signature of modern human cognition. If embodied strategies could be in principle implemented by primitive mental architectures to produce early body ornaments, then these artefacts would not suffice to prove the thesis of cognitive equivalence between ornament-makers and modern populations.
Advisors/Committee Members: Harvati, Katerina (Prof. Dr.) (advisor).

▼ The communication between neurons within neural circuits relies on neurotransmitters (glutamate, γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA)) and neuromodulators (acetylcholine, dopamine, serotonin, etc.). However, despite sharing similar molecular elements, neurotransmitters and neuromodulators are distinct classes of molecules and mediate different aspects of neural activity and metabolism. Neurotransmitters on one hand are responsible for synaptic signal transmission (classical transmission) while neuromodulators exert their functions by mediating different postsynaptic events that result in changes to the balance between excitation and inhibition. Neuromodulation, while essential to nervous system function, has been significantly more difficult to study than neurotransmission. This is principally due to the fact that effects elicited by neuromodulators are usually of slow onset, long lasting, and are not simply excitation or inhibition. In contrast to the effects of neurotransmitters, neuromodulators enable neurons to be more flexible in their ability to encode different sorts of information (e.g. sensory information) on a variety of time scales. However, it is important to appreciate that one of the challenges in the study of neuromodulation is to understand the extent to which neuromodulators’ actions are coordinated at all levels of brain function. That is, from the cellular and metabolic level to network and cognitive control. Therefore, understanding the molecules that mediate brain networks interactions is essential to understanding the brain dynamic, and also helps to put the cellular and molecular processes in perspective. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a technique that allows access to various cellular and metabolic aspects of network communication that are difficult to access when studying one neuron at the time. Its non-invasiveness nature allows the comparison of data and hypotheses of the primate brain to that of the human brain. Hence, understanding the effects of neuromodulation on local microcircuits is needed. Furthermore, given the massive projections of the neuromodulatory diffuse ascending systems, fMRI combined with pharmacological and neurophysiological methods may provide true insight into their organization and dynamics. However, little is known about how to interpret the effects of neuromodulation in fMRI and neurophysiological data, for instance, how to disentangle blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) signal changes relating to cognitive changes (presumably neuromodulatory influences) from stimulus-driven or perceptual effects. The purpose of this dissertation is to understand the causal relationship between neural activity and hemodynamic responses under the influence of neuromodulation. To this end we present the results of six studies. In the first study, we aimed to establish a mass-spectrometry-based technique to uncover the distribution of different metabolites, neurotransmitters and neuromodulators in the macaque brain. We simultaneously measured the concentrations of these…
Advisors/Committee Members: Logothetis, Nikos (Prof. Dr.) (advisor).

▼ Anorexia nervosa (AN) is the mental illness with the highest standardized mortality rates. Not only restrictive eating behavior, low body weight, and fear of weight gain, but also early onset and chronic somatic and mental complications make it a very dangerous disease that has not yet been fully understood. Up to 80% of AN patients engage in high levels of physical activity (PA), which leads to an even larger imbalance of body weight. PA in AN is complex and cannot be reduced to a conscious action with the aim of losing weight. There are several forms of manifestations, multiple definitions, and various explanations of the origin. Additionally, there are many severe complications as consequences of PA in AN. These complications include, for example, longer duration of the illness, longer treatment durations, higher relapse rates, and more psychiatric comorbidities. Thus, the quantification of PA in AN is important. In literature PA in AN is most often carried out through subjective methods such as questionnaires, self-ratings, or interviews. Unfortunately, the precision of these methods is not very high. However, accelerometry is an objective method, which measures PA exactly through the assessment of triaxial acceleration of the body.
The aim of this study was to establish accelerometry as a method of PA assessment in AN and to evaluate its feasibility in a pilot study. Therefore, the focus of this thesis lies on the methodology. To establish accelerometry in AN we concluded all literature that measured PA in AN with accelerometry in a systematic review. Subsequently, in the ANEX pilot study we measured PA in AN with the ActiGraph in 13 outpatients and 12 inpatients. The inpatients have been followed-up one month after treatment. Moreover, we assessed selfperceived PA with questionnaires as well as eating disorder pathology, stress, and depression. Many AN patients refused to participate, and in the ANEX pilot study we tried to determine the reasons for this.
Advisors/Committee Members: Teufel, Martin (Prof. Dr.) (advisor).

▼ Zur Kriminalitätsberichterstattung in der Presse liegen mittlerweile einige differenzierte Untersuchungen vor. Vor allem in den letzten Jahren wurde zunehmend die Notwendigkeit erkannt, eingehende Analysen seriöser Tageszeitungen und Wochenzeitschriften durchzuführen. Detaillierte Studien über längere Zeiträume sind bislang jedoch kaum zu finden. Bei der vorliegenden Dissertation handelt es sich um eine empirische Längsschnittuntersuchung zum Thema "Jugendkriminalität im Spiegel der Lokalpresse". Über einen Zeitraum von 25 Jahren (1975-2000) wurde sowohl das Ausmaß als auch die Art und Weise der Berichterstattung über Jugendkriminalität im Kreis Tübingen analysiert. Eine zentrale Fragestellung hierbei war, ob die Berichterstattung über Straftaten nichtdeutscher junger Tatverdächtiger zur Stigmatisierung dieser Personengruppe und dadurch zur Verfestigung bestehender Vorurteile beiträgt. Die Ergebnisse der Presseanalyse wurden den Daten der Jugendgerichtshilfestatistik gegenübergestellt. Auf dieser Basis konnten die Differenzen zwischen der statistischen Realität von Jugendkriminalität in Tübingen und deren Repräsentation in der Lokalpresse deutlich gemacht und detailliert beschrieben werden.; There is presently a growing body of research on media and crime in Germany. Especially in recent years we realised the necessity of a serious analysis of daily newspapers and magazines. But until now we can only find a few detailed studies over a long period of time. This dissertation presents the results of an analysis about juvenile delinquency in the local press. It focuses on forming an understanding of the question what is being published and how it is being published. A central issue is in which way the crimes carried out by young immigrants are reported and if these reports are biased due to racist prejudices. To prove this matter of concern we analysed the reporting of a local newspaper in Tübingen over 25 years (1975 – 2000). We compared this long term study to the statistical results of the juvenile court assistance (Jugendgerichtshilfe). In this way we were able to reveal the differences between the statistical representation of juvenile delinquency in Tübingen and the representation of this subject in the local press in detail.
Advisors/Committee Members: Kerner, Hans-Jürgen (advisor).

► Aging is the most important risk factor for neurodegenerative diseases associated with pathological protein aggregation such as Alzheimer’s disease. Although aging is an important player,…
(more)

▼ Aging is the most important risk factor for neurodegenerative diseases associated with pathological protein aggregation such as Alzheimer’s disease. Although aging is an important player, it remains unknown which molecular changes are relevant for disease initiation. Recently, we and others demonstrated that several hundred proteins become highly insoluble with age, in the absence of disease. But how these misfolded proteins aggregating with age affect neurodegenerative diseases is not known until today. Importantly, several of these aggregation-prone proteins are found as minor components in disease-associated aggregates such as amyloid-β plaques or neurofibrillary tangles. In this thesis we demonstrate that insoluble protein extracts from aged Caenorhabditis elegans or aged mouse brains are able to seed amyloid-β aggregation in vitro, whereas protein aggregates formed during the early stages of life did not initiate amyloid-β aggregation. The injection of insoluble protein extracts from aged mouse brains into the hippocampus of APP23 transgenic mice lead to a formation of some amyloid-β plaques in three out of five mice. By mass spectrometry analysis of insoluble protein extracts from C. elegans we found late-aggregating proteins that were previously identified as minor components of amyloid-β plaques and neurofibrillary tangles such as 14-3-3, Ubiquitin-like modifier-activating enzyme 1 and Lamin A/C, highlighting these as strong candidates for cross-seeding. Double-transgenic worms overexpressing human amyloid-β in the body-wall muscle together with PAR-5 (C. elegans homolog of 14-3-3) showed an increase in paralysis, which demonstrates that PAR-5 (14-3-3) could be a potential seed for the aggregation of amyloid-β.
In conclusion, the results presented here show that physiological protein aggregation with age might constitute a heterologous seed for disease-associated protein aggregation. To find out why these heterologous seeds form with age would have a major impact in advancing our understanding of aging and its influence on pathophysiology. Targeting the seeds before the onset of the disease would be an important prevention strategy.
Recently, widespread protein aggregation as a common feature of aging has become an important topic of research. We already demonstrated that cross-seeding between different age-dependent aggregating proteins is possible in the absence of disease. The investigation of endogenous age-dependent protein aggregation could give insights into molecular and cellular mechanisms that regulate protein aggregation and into the effect of protein insolubility on organisms health. Therefore, we wanted to analyze whether rapidly-aggregating proteins can act as harmful seeds for the aggregation of other proteins in C. elegans. The goal was to crosslink a rapidly-aggregating protein together with its co-aggregating proteins, to purify them and to identify them by mass spectrometry. This thesis presents the establishment of a tandem affinity purification under denaturing conditions to be used…
Advisors/Committee Members: David, Della (Dr.) (advisor).

▼ Beta-band rhythm (13-30 Hz) is a dominant oscillatory activity in the sensorimotor system. Numerous studies reported on links between motor performance and the cortical and cortico-spinal beta rhythm. However, these studies report divergent beta-band frequencies and are, additionally, based on differently performed motor-tasks (e.g., motor imagination, muscle contraction, reach, grasp, and attention). This diversity blurs the role of beta in the sensorimotor system. It consequently challenges the development of beta-band activity-dependent stimulation protocols in the sensorimotor system. In this vein, we studied the functional role of beta-band cortico-cortical and cortico-spinal networks during a motor learning task. We studied how the contribution of cortical and spinal beta changes in the course of learning, and how this modulation is affected by afferent feedback to the sensorimotor system. We furthermore researched the relationship to motor performance. Consider that we made our study in the absence of any residual movement to allow our findings to be translated into rehabilitation programs for severely affected stroke patients. This thesis, at first, investigates evoked responses after transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). This revealed two different beta-band networks, i.e., in the low and high beta-band reflecting cortical and cortico-spinal activity. We, then, used a broader frequency range in the beta-band to trigger passive opening of the hand (peripheral feedback) or cortical stimulation (cortical feedback). While a unilateral hemispheric increase in cortico-spinal synchronization was observed in the group with peripheral feedback, a bilateral hemispheric increase in cortico-cortical and cortico-spinal synchronization was observed for the group with cortical feedback. An improvement in motor performance was found in the peripheral group only. Additionally, an enhancement in the directed cortico-spinal synchronization from cortex to periphery was observed for the peripheral group. Similar neurophysiological and behavioral changes were observed for stroke patients receiving peripheral feedback. The results 6 suggest two different mechanisms for beta-band activity-dependent protocols depending on the feedback modality. While the peripheral feedback appears to increase the synchronization among neural groups, cortical stimulation appears to recruit dormant neurons and to extend the involved motor network. These findings may provide insights regarding the mechanism behind novel activity-dependent protocols. It also highlights the importance of afferent feedback for motor restoration in beta-band activity-dependent rehabilitation programs.; Dissertation ist gesperrt bis 31.12.2019 !
Advisors/Committee Members: Gharabaghi, Alireza (Prof. Dr.) (advisor).

► Protein synthesis is one of the costliest processes in the cell. Therefore, the initiation of translation is a tightly regulated process. One major control mechanism…
(more)

▼ Protein synthesis is one of the costliest processes in the cell. Therefore, the initiation of translation is a tightly regulated process. One major control mechanism targets the activity or formation of the so-called eIF4F (eukaryotic initiation factor 4F) complex bound to the 5’ cap structure of an mRNA. This heterotrimeric complex, consisting of the RNA helicase eIF4A, the cap-binding protein eIF4E and the scaffold subunit eIF4G, is ultimately required for the recruitment of the 43S PIC (pre-initiation complex) to the mRNA, leading to subsequent scanning and initiation. The formation of the eIF4F complex is under the control of a group of inhibitory proteins known as eIF4E-binding proteins (4E-BPs), which bind to eIF4E and prevent its interaction with eIF4G. 4E-BPs comprise a group of functionally distinct proteins and include global translational repressors such as the three human proteins 4E-BP1-3, or large, multidomain proteins that likely act on an mRNA-specific level. Alternatively, the assembly of the eIF4F complex can be prevented by the eIF4E-homologous protein (4EHP or eIF4E2), which competes with eIF4E in binding to the 5’cap structure of an mRNA. Compared to the global repression by 4E-BPs, the later mechanism only acts on a message specific level.
Comprehensive molecular insight into eIF4E- and 4EHP-complexes involved in the regulation of translation initiation was lacking. My doctoral work provides a fundamental structural and mechanistic understanding of the formation of these regulatory complexes. In my initial studies, I characterized the binding of various 4E-BPs to eIF4E and provided the first structural insights into an extended eIF4E-binding mode of different 4E-BPs. The structures revealed a conserved mode of interaction with eIF4E, despite the lack of sequence conservation. Additionally, in a collaborative project, I observed that the eIF4E-binding mode characteristic of 4E-BP complexes is also present in eIF4E-eIF4G complexes, expanding the knowledge on the mechanism of translation initiation and its regulation.
Another part of my doctoral studies focused on 4E-BPs very specific functions and architecture. Specifically, I investigated the binding mode of an invertebrate-specific 4E-BP called Mextli. My studies unveiled an unexpected variation and evolutionary plasticity in the eIF4E-binding mode of Mextli homologs across species, which confer distinct functional properties to the respective eIF4E-complexes.
I also studied 4EHP, the second member of the eIF4E protein family, and its specific interaction partners, the Grb10-interacting GYF domain-containing (GIGYF) proteins 1 and 2, and obtained the first crystal structures of theses 4EHP-specific binding partners bound to 4EHP. The molecular details of the 4EHP-GIGYF translational repressor complex explain why GIGYF proteins bind to 4EHP and not to eIF4E. Overall, my doctoral studies revealed new insights on eIF4E-related complexes and their diverse roles in posttranscriptional gene regulation.
Advisors/Committee Members: Izaurralde, Elisa (Prof. Dr.) (advisor).

► Economists and educational researchers discovered that noncognitive factors such as in-terests, self-concepts, and conscientiousness are both interesting and relevant because of the evidence that these…
(more)

▼ Economists and educational researchers discovered that noncognitive factors such as in-terests, self-concepts, and conscientiousness are both interesting and relevant because of the evidence that these types of constructs can be used to predict important human-capital out-comes (e.g., school functioning; see Kautz, Heckman, Diris, ter Weel, & Borghans, 2014). Given the importance of these factors, the discussion quickly turned to how these factors can be enhanced and fostered. It was recently claimed that a construct’s malleability is one pre-condition for changing or enhancing it (e.g., through an intervention; Bailey, Duncan, Odgers, & Yu, 2017). However, the group of noncognitive factors reflects an inclusive conglomerate of variables, including personality traits and motivational resources. The inclusive grouping of concepts belies the often stark theoretical and conceptual distinctions that divide these constructs when they are used in research. For instance, the Big Five personality traits origi-nate from trait theories, whereas constructs such as self-concepts and interests come from theoretical models that take a social cognitive perspective. Whereas traits are often defined as stable and cross-situationally consistent (McCrae & Costa, 2008b), social cognitive con-structs are conceptualized as less stable, relevant to very specific contexts, and derived almost exclusively from experience (Bandura, 2001b; Eccles & Wigfield, 2002). In addition, be-cause of their different origins, it is uncommon to find both types of constructs included in the same study (Roberts, 2009). This has created an asymmetry in the understanding of how changeable and malleable (e.g., stable or context-sensitive) the two classes of constructs are and has also impeded the ability to explore synergies when considering them together.
The current dissertation has two superordinate aims. The first aim was to test two basic assumptions about the malleability (i.e., time-consistency and context-sensitivity) of traits and social cognitive constructs. For this purpose, the Big Five personality traits (consci-entiousness, neuroticism, extraversion, openness, and agreeableness) were contrasted against several social cognitive variables (i.e., interest, self-concept, and effort) with regard to their temporal stability (Study 1) and their context-sensitivity (Study 2). The second aim of the dissertation was to examine potential synergies when considering variables from both per-spectives (conscientiousness as a trait and interest as a social cognitive construct) in predicting an achievement-related outcome, namely academic effort (Study 3).
This dissertation benefited from a large-scale longitudinal study called “Tradition and Innovation in Educational Systems” (TRAIN; Jonkmann, Rose, & Trautwein, 2013), which is hosted at the Hector Research Institute of Education Sciences and Psychology at the Univer-sity of Tübingen, Germany. TRAIN is a school achievement study that encompasses four time points (from Grades 5 to 8). The study…
Advisors/Committee Members: Göllner, Richard (Dr.) (advisor).

Note: this citation may be lacking information needed for this citation format:Not specified: Masters Thesis or Doctoral Dissertation

Universität Tübingen

25.
Küppers, Julia.
How Can Medical Students Be Prepared Effectively for Current Challenges in the Field of Expert-Guided Online-Counselling on Preventive Interventions? - A Randomised, Prospective Trial Exemplified by a Case Study of Mammography-Screening
.

► Introduction The impact of the Internet on medical care leads to various medical information sources for patients and to an increasing demand for online-counselling. Thus…
(more)

▼ Introduction
The impact of the Internet on medical care leads to various medical information sources for patients and to an increasing demand for online-counselling. Thus new challenges for doctors arise. Aim of this project is to close the gap between these challenges and the current lack in options to prepare medical students for them. A training program in a blended-learning format with an online-platform as training instrument was designed and implemented into a gynaecology course during 9th semester of medical curriculum. It was analysed on basis of the following research question:
How can medical students be prepared effectively for current challenges in the field of expert-guided online-counselling on preventive interventions?
- A randomised, prospective trial exemplified by a case study of Mammography-Screening
1. How does an online-forum need to be designed, in order to provide an adequate training instrument simulating the arising challenges with a high level in closeness to reality?
2. Which didactical blended-learning approach (trainer-directed or self-directed) is most appropriate to prepare students effectively?
Methods
The online-forum’s development is shown as well as the establishment of the two course formats along Kern’s model. In a prospective, randomised, parallel group study the training outcome is evaluated by standardised and blinded pre/post analysis using a test, in which students counselled a simulated patient request through the forum. This was followed by an online-survey for students’ self-assessment regarding the learning objectives. The survey also collected data on students’ characteristics and course evaluation.
Results
The data shows a G*Power (1-β) > .8 and no significant differences between sociodemographic aspects (p > .05) of the two groups (G1, G2). Students’ evaluation (lowest: 1, best: 5) results as follows: external organisational circumstances (time, distances) (mean = 2.79; SD = .142), performance and moderation of the course (mean = 4.19; SD = .104), application of online-forum (mean = 3.90; SD = .103). The students of the self-directed group (G1) show a significant increase in their self-assessment (doctor-patient communication: Z = -2.036; p =.042; online-communication: Z = -2.058; p =.04), implemented independent online-research (p =.073) during independent training more often than G2 students and completed more training cases in any range.
Discussion
The data indicates great suitability of the online-forum for training and its high acceptance amongst the students. However, external organisational circumstances were criticised. The forum supports the effectiveness of training and since it is an instructional method in fields of simulation-based learning, it is shown to raise the effectiveness of medical education. Students of G1 (self-directed) arise to show a better learning outcome and their higher activity level correlates with their significantly raised self-assessment regarding the topical learning objectives. This is supported by scientific…
Advisors/Committee Members: Zipfel, Stephan (Prof. Dr.) (advisor).

Küppers, J. (2018). How Can Medical Students Be Prepared Effectively for Current Challenges in the Field of Expert-Guided Online-Counselling on Preventive Interventions? - A Randomised, Prospective Trial Exemplified by a Case Study of Mammography-Screening
. (Thesis). Universität Tübingen. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/10900/79851

Note: this citation may be lacking information needed for this citation format:Not specified: Masters Thesis or Doctoral Dissertation

Chicago Manual of Style (16th Edition):

Küppers, Julia. “How Can Medical Students Be Prepared Effectively for Current Challenges in the Field of Expert-Guided Online-Counselling on Preventive Interventions? - A Randomised, Prospective Trial Exemplified by a Case Study of Mammography-Screening
.” 2018. Thesis, Universität Tübingen. Accessed March 19, 2018.
http://hdl.handle.net/10900/79851.

Note: this citation may be lacking information needed for this citation format:Not specified: Masters Thesis or Doctoral Dissertation

MLA Handbook (7th Edition):

Küppers, Julia. “How Can Medical Students Be Prepared Effectively for Current Challenges in the Field of Expert-Guided Online-Counselling on Preventive Interventions? - A Randomised, Prospective Trial Exemplified by a Case Study of Mammography-Screening
.” 2018. Web. 19 Mar 2018.

Vancouver:

Küppers J. How Can Medical Students Be Prepared Effectively for Current Challenges in the Field of Expert-Guided Online-Counselling on Preventive Interventions? - A Randomised, Prospective Trial Exemplified by a Case Study of Mammography-Screening
. [Internet] [Thesis]. Universität Tübingen; 2018. [cited 2018 Mar 19].
Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/10900/79851.

Note: this citation may be lacking information needed for this citation format:Not specified: Masters Thesis or Doctoral Dissertation

Council of Science Editors:

Küppers J. How Can Medical Students Be Prepared Effectively for Current Challenges in the Field of Expert-Guided Online-Counselling on Preventive Interventions? - A Randomised, Prospective Trial Exemplified by a Case Study of Mammography-Screening
. [Thesis]. Universität Tübingen; 2018. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/10900/79851

Note: this citation may be lacking information needed for this citation format:Not specified: Masters Thesis or Doctoral Dissertation

Universität Tübingen

26.
Buttliere, Brett.
Cognitive Conflict in Science: Demonstrations in what scientists talk about and study.

► The concept of cognitive conflict, that being two competing ideas in the mind at the same time, encompasses a large number of instantiations throughout Psychology…
(more)

▼ The concept of cognitive conflict, that being two competing ideas in the mind at the same time, encompasses a large number of instantiations throughout Psychology (Festinger, 1964; Heine, Proulx, & Vohs, 2006), even playing an important role in many philosophies considering how science works best (Kuhn, 1962; Platt, 1964; Popper, 1934/ 2005). This experience of cognitive conflict is widely considered to be aversive, but also motivating, for individuals across a wide range of contexts. Here I examined two ways cognitive conflict affects what topics receive scientific attention. Pairing the philosophies of science with Festinger’s (1950) hypotheses about informal social communication, it was hypothesized that:
1. Scientists will discuss things they disagree about more than things they agree about.
2. Scientists will study more those topics which threaten individual or group outcomes.
Utilizing publicly available data about scientific publications, I tested these hypotheses within a number of contexts, including public comments on papers, Tweets about papers and topics, and the author and automatically generated keywords describing scientific papers themselves (as a measure of what scientists write about and study). Two studies suggested that more negations in the texts (e.g., but, not, however) were related to larger discussions, more views, and more media attention. Two other studies examined the keywords describing papers, first all papers published across science by PLoS, and then all papers across publishers within Psychology. Both studies suggested that there are more unique negative keywords studied, and that these keywords have more papers written about them, on average. Overall, the results suggest that scientists talk more when they disagree, and that they speak more about threats to the group and individual. This more generally implies that cognitive conflict plays a role in determining what scientists talk about and study, and more generally that general psychological principles can be applied within the context of science.
Advisors/Committee Members: Hesse, Friedrich (Prof. Dr.) (advisor).

► Mathematical competences are important for mastering the problems that are encoun-tered in a modern society that values knowledge. Such competences are relevant not only for…
(more)

▼ Mathematical competences are important for mastering the problems that are encoun-tered in a modern society that values knowledge. Such competences are relevant not only for mastering the mathematical problems encountered in school but also for managing everyday life. In practice, mathematical competences are required for finding solutions to society’s major problems (e.g., the prediction of global warming). Mathematical competences are thereby assumed to be individual cognitive abilities and skills as well as the outcomes of learning processes. An individual is ascribed with sophisticated mathematical competences if he or she is able to come up with new mathematical problems by applying previously existing mathematical competences meaningfully.
Therewith, fostering mathematical competences is of major importance. Based on a cognitive-socio-constructive understanding of learning in mathematics, students need learn-ing possibilities that lock in their individual potential. Several mechanisms and factors have been shown to drive the acquisition of mathematical competences. To foster mathematical competences, challenging learning opportunities are necessary. Especially for students who are already able to solve curriculum-based tasks. One extracurricular enrichment approach that has been suggested to challenge students are (domain-specific, mathematical) academic competitions. But, to ensure that these students will be able to master the challenging prob-lems they will face in the competition, they must prepare appropriately to solve such prob-lems. Therefore, and to protect them from negative experiences such as failure, corresponding training programs have been suggested and implemented in practice. Such training programs prepare students to participate in a specific academic competition.
Paper 1 reviews the appropriateness of academic competitions by summarizing the roles ascribed to academic competitions with regard to the promotion of gifted students. Using the example of the Mathematical Olympiad for elementary school students, a training program that considers the strengths and weaknesses of mathematically gifted elementary school stu-dents is introduced. The training was aimed at enhancing the performance in the Mathemati-cal Olympiad as well as (process-based) mathematical competences.
The effectiveness of this particular training was examined in two empirical studies: In Paper 2, a quasi-experimental pre- and posttest design was used to investigate the effects of the training. Dependent variables were success in the Mathematical Olympiad, mathematical competences, and the motivation to do mathematics (i.e., math self-concept and value beliefs for mathematics). A total of 201 third- and fourth-grade students participated in this study. Positive effects were found for third and fourth graders’ performance in the Mathematical Olympiad, their mathematical competences, and the task-specific interest in mathematics of fourth-grade students.
In Paper 3, the effects of a training that was aimed at fostering…
Advisors/Committee Members: Golle, Jessika (Prof. Dr.) (advisor).

► This dissertation investigates the potential of a discrimination learning approach to language processes across three different experimental tasks (word naming, compound reading in natural discourse…
(more)

▼ This dissertation investigates the potential of a discrimination learning approach to language processes across three different experimental tasks (word naming, compound reading in natural discourse and primed picture naming) and three different measures of language processing (reaction times, eye movements and event-related potentials). The work presented here demonstrates that discrimination learning offers a competitive approach to language processing as compared to traditional psycholinguistic models and analysis techniques.
Advisors/Committee Members: Baayen, Harald (Prof. Dr.) (advisor).